There are a few different types of brain tumour. The name that the tumour is given depends on the type of cell that it starts in. The ones that tend to affect teenagers the most are called gliomas because they start in glial cells, and medulloblastomas, which start in cells which are very early or primitive cells.
Gliomas develop from the supporting cells of the brain which hold the nerve cells in place. There are two main types that affect younger people:
- astrocytomas
- ependymomas.
Medulloblastomas often develop in the cerebellum, the back part of the brain, and may spread to other parts of the brain, or around the spinal cord.
Brain tumours can be either primary, which means they have started in the brain, or secondary, where they have spread from another part of the body. This section is about primary brain tumours.
Primary tumours can develop anywhere in the brain and can be either cancerous (malignant) or non-cancerous (benign). Benign brain tumours do not spread and, if they can be removed successfully, often do not cause any more problems. However, it's not always possible to completely remove all benign brain tumours.
Malignant tumours are most likely to cause problems by spreading to the normal tissue around them - causing pressure and damage to the surrounding areas.
Around 150 teenagers and young people develop brain tumours each year, making them the most common cancer to affect younger people.
